Wrong Fox
by revdb
Summary: Gudako just wanted to add the fox waifu with fluffy tail to her collection during the pickup summon. Meanwhile, Konoha was getting terrorized by a giant nine-tailed demon fox. Somehow, Chaldea ends up with a gigantic Beast-class demon fox on its side while baby Naruto gets a fox shrine maiden sealed into his gut. Naruto x F/GO crossover, focuses more on the Naruto side of things.
1. Chapter 1

"Come on, it's the Casko pickup summon!"

Gudako ran down the halls of Chaldea, clutching a pile of Saint Quartz in her arms, while Mashu struggled to keep up with her senpai's incredible speed.

"Senpai, wait up!"

Gudako wove through the Servants in the hallways and made a sharp turn into the Summoning Room, where she saw Emiya already standing inside.

"Good day, Master. I trust that you didn't spend too much money this time?" Emiya asked.

Gudako put her pile of Quartz down before pulling out two iTunes gift cards from her pocket.

"I didn't spend too much money on Quartz this time, are you proud of me?"

"Yes, and I'm sure Mashu's budget management certainly helped with that. We can't have you blowing all of your cash every time there's a pickup summon, after all."

Mashu giggled quietly as she set up her shield in the middle of the summoning circle.

Gudako placed a pile of 30 Quartz on the shield for a 10x summon and rubbed her hands together in anticipation.

At the same time, Nero walked in the room to see the summoning.

"Praetor! Are you going to try and summon Tamamo?"

"Yep, that's right! She's an Arts supporter so she'll fit perfectly together with you and Emiya. Why, did you guys know each other already or something?"

Nero and Emiya just gave each other a knowing look and grinned.

"The three of us had...many adventures on the Moon Cell. I don't expect you to know much about that, though." Emiya replied.

"Umu! Dumb as she may be, Casko is still a rival worthy of my respect. I'm certain we'll all get along if she appears." Nero added.

"That's good. Team synergy is important, after all." Gudako nodded sagely before heading over to the summoning circle to see what had appeared so far.

"Meh, just some crappy Craft Essences..." Gudako frowned as the third summon went ahead. With a flash of light, a golden Craft Essence appeared, revealing itself to be a **Kaleidoscope**.

"Woah, sweet! I needed more of these." Gudako looked closer and noticed something off about the card.

"Wait, this thing is already limit broken and max leveled. And this thing is autographed?" Gudako squinted her eyes. "It says Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg, I think."

Emiya suddenly had a very bad feeling.

"Senpai, look. There's a letter taped to the backside."

Gudako pulled the small piece of paper off the back of the Kaleidoscope and started reading.

* * *

 _Greetings, Gudako-chan. I heard that you were looking to summon the fox miko, Tamamo-no-Mae. I am actually a massive fan of your adventures, and as such, I have enclosed this shiny First Edition, Max Limit Broken Kaleidoscope, complete with my autograph as a sign of my appreciation. However, I felt that you could do better than a simple miko shaman, so I have sent a nine-tailed demon fox your way, he should arrive several seconds after you finish reading this letter. Remember, I'll be watching._

 _-Kischur Zelrech Schweinorg_

* * *

Emiya's face visibly paled. At around the same time, the final tenth summon was underway.

Time seemed to slow down as Emiya reached toward the summoning circle and screamed as a black Servant card appeared in a flash of red light. Servant cards were supposed to be bronze, silver, or gold, but never black. Suddenly, a horribly dark oppressive feeling smothered all of Chaldea as the black card crackled to life and blew out the walls of the summoning room. Mashu, Nero, and Emiya instinctively got between Gudako and the summoning circle and quickly pulled her back.

Nearly all of the Servants and Chaldea employees came running as the smoke settled down, revealing a massive nine-tailed demon fox sitting where the summoning room used to be.

"Dear Kami, how did this happen..." Emiya took up a defensive stance with his twin swords while the giant fox looked over everyone with its red, slitted eyes. It looked around as its mind was quickly filled with information about Chaldea.

 **"I am Kurama, the Kyubii no Kitsune. I don't know how a lowly ningen like you summoned a Beast-class Servant like me, but I guess I'll stick around. After all, you all look very interesting."** Kurama introduced himself while all the other Servant remained very tense.

"Wow, cool! Here, eat this." Everyone facepalmed as Gudako pulled out a gigantic pile of EXP crystals and laid it in front of the great Kyubii no Kitsune.

 **"Huh? What is this."**

"Go on, it's good for you." Gudako prodded.

Deciding to humor the little ningen girl, Kurama ate up all of the crunchy EXP laid out in front of him.

 **"Considering the alternative, I think staying here will prove to be far more pleasant."** Kurama conceded, shuddering at the fact that he could have ended up caged into some other human.

Also, all of the strange looking humans here in Chaldea looked far more powerful than the average ninja that he was used to seeing, and far more interesting as well.

* * *

 _At the same time, outside of Konohagakure, in another dimension_

The Kyubii, bound by chakra chains, decided to try and impale baby Naruto with his claw in a last ditch attempt to avoid getting sealed. What it didn't expect was for Minato and Kushina to shield Naruto with their bodies.

For a few precious moments, Kushina and Minato cried and spoke their last words to their son, telling him to eat well, make good friends, and to avoid being a pervert like Jiraiya. The two parents prepared some of their own chakra to seal into their child so he could at least speak to them one day. Minato left the key to the Eight Trigrams Seal to a toad named Gerotora.

"Are you ready, Kushina?"

Kushina could only nod as Minato began the sealing.

The Kyubii roared with rage as the Shinigami reached out and prepared to rip out its soul when suddenly the giant demon fox disappeared in a giant cloud of smoke, with a strange girl with fox ears and a tail taking its place.

"Your dependable Fox Shrine Maiden, Caster has- eh?!"

Poor Tamamo, who didn't sign up for any of this nonsense, was suddenly bound by the same chakra chains that were holding down the Kyubii just a moment ago. The unfortunate shrine maiden appeared at the literal last moment before the sealing, and it was already too late to stop the process. She screamed as the Shinigami tried to rip out her soul. Since Tamamo, being a Servant, was already a spiritual entity, the Shinigami simply grabbed her entire body and sealed her into baby Naruto while Minato and Kushina could only watch in horror as something had gone terribly wrong. Whatever they had sealed into their son was _definitely_ not the Kyubii.

 _Well, shit,_ was Minato's last thoughts as the Shinigami claimed his soul as payment for the sealing.

Moments later, Sarutobi Hiruzen along with some other ninjas ran over to where Kushina and Minato were. The Sandaime picked up the baby while the other ninjas checked over Minato and Kushina. Unfortunately, Minato was already dead and Kushina was already in her final moments, the only thing keeping her alive was her Uzumaki vitality.

"Sandaime...his name...Naruto...please take... care of him..." Kushina choked out.

"Please don't speak anymore, Kushina. I'll take responsibility for Naruto, and I'll be sure to remember his name as well."

"Kyubii... not..." Kushina spoke her cryptic last words as the light faded from her eyes. Unfortunately, no one alive knew what she meant.

* * *

Tamamo suddenly found herself thrown into a sewer. Disoriented and confused, she took a few moments to recover. She looked ahead to see a small blond child laying on the wet floor of the sewer. She gasped and tried to rush forward to the child, but suddenly, large metal bars sprouted from the ground, effectively caging her to into the top half of the sewer. The bars formed into gates and a loud clicking sound could be heard as the seal locked into place.

Angered, she began to blast at the cage with her magecraft. When that didn't work, she started to pound at the gates with her Yata Mirror. Eventually, she ran out of energy and tried to squeeze her body between the bars, but the bars would move closer together to prevent that too.

Exhausted and alone, Tamamo could only collapse to her knees, weakly hitting the metal bars with her bare hands as the cries of the baby continued to echo throughout the sewer.


	2. Chapter 2

The next three or so years were very boring and very lonesome for Tamamo. Being sealed into someone wasn't exactly a pleasant experience. She had to give credit where credit was due, however, because the material this seal was made of was damn strong. Of course, a seal meant to contain the great Kyubii had to be strong, but she didn't know that.

At the very least, it was very spacious within the sealed area. Apparently the cage was originally meant for a much larger creature, but honestly she couldn't care less. At least she was able to stretch her legs and not worry about a lack of space, although she spent most of her time meditating. If she meditated long enough, she could eventually regain her other eight tails and reach godhood again, although she had no delusions she could even reach one tail within the normal lifespan of a human.

Unfortunately, a Servant ultimately survives on magical energy, whether it's mana supplied from their Master or by devouring the souls of others. Clearly, she was in no condition to go around devouring the souls of random people, being locked up in a cage and all, and she didn't need more people to refer to her as a fox demon. She already had enough of being chased around while getting called a demon in life, all she was hoping for was getting summoned by a handsome Master, and becoming a good wife.

Instead she finds herself chained and locked up within five minutes of her summoning. And they say that only Lancers have the terrible luck.

Even when she is sitting still, her magical energy still depletes at a constant rate, since Servants consume energy simply to exist in the first place. It didn't help that the poor child seemed to be malnourished from what Tamamo could glean from his memories and as time went on she found herself having to cast healing magecraft more and more as the adults in the orphanage seemed to hit him whenever he somehow displeased them or simply because they could. The first time this happened, Tamamo had freaked out and sent a pulse of healing magecraft through the bars of the seal. Fortunately it seemed to work, and the bruise on his left cheek healed quickly as a dull green light enveloped the injury.

However, having to constantly heal poor Naruto put a significant drain on her magic reserves, and eventually she found herself dangerously low on mana.

The first and only time this happened, she started panicking and latched on to one of the strange pipes that ran along the walls of the sewer that seemed to carry some sort of blue energy. The moment she made physical contact, she felt immediate relief as she was able to absorb and internalize it as Od, until she felt her host fall unconscious and she realized that she had screwed up big time by draining too much at once. Her host was still a toddler, the magical standards that would apply to an adult obviously wouldn't apply to a child as young as this!

Nearly having another panic attack, she took hold of another empty looking pipe and tried to pump some of the energy she had taken back into his body. However, Od was not the same as the energy she had taken. She realized that fact very quickly as instead of blue, she pumped teal colored Od into the pipes. What happened next was unexpected.

Previously hidden lines embedded into the walls lit up as the magical energy entered them, forming complex circuitry-styled patterns. Tamamo immediately realized what they were.

Those were magic circuits.

Apparently the act of introducing magical energy into the boy's body had awakened them. To say that Tamamo was surprised would be an understatement. Whether he had always had the capacity for magecraft or if the circuits only appeared because Tamamo had existed within him, she didn't know. Although, by the existence of that other blue energy, she assumed the latter was true.

Tamamo frowned as she looked at the pipe with blue energy running through it. It seemed to be running a rather low, although it was refilling slowly on its own, which looked like a good sign. Pumping a bit more Od into the boy's system, she sat down and stared at the wall. Not like there was anything better to do, anyways.

And then she saw it. What appeared to be a tiny hole in the wall.

She pressed her hand against it, and was shocked as she felt very pure natural energy outside. As a Caster as well as a fox shaman, she was naturally sensitive to these kinds of things. Apparently this world had a ton of nature energy, also known as the life force of the world. Taking a deep breath, she reached out and was rewarded with what looked like a green thread of energy. She kept pulling till she had a sizable ball of the stuff. Very carefully, she absorbed a tiny trickle of the green natural energy.

When she could feel no ill effects from using it, she took in more and more until her magical reserves were full.

And she had never felt better.

The nature energy of this world was incredibly potent and she found that she didn't really need a lot of it, especially since she wasn't using up much energy due to the lack of combat. She then drew in some more to refill Naruto's energy reserves. Pressing a hand onto a pipe, she pushed the nature energy in until there was a perfect balance of blue and green running through the pipes. Putting her hands on her hips, Tamamo congratulated herself on a job well done concerning the internal energy crisis. She went back and tried to draw in more energy when her host started waking up. The moment Naruto moved his body in the outside world, Tamamo found it nearly impossible to get a firm grip on the nature energy. She decided that it was probably enough for now.

* * *

Naruto woke up laying face down in the dirt. He had been walking around the orphanage by himself since none of the other children ever wanted to play with him and the adults were all mean to him. He scratched his head as he tried to recall what happened before he blacked out. He had suddenly felt drained of all his energy before falling unconscious, but now he felt better than he ever had! His body felt light, his vision was more clear, he could sense people for some reason, he even thought he could walk around with his eyes closed and still be fine. His hearing was also improved, and he could hear people in the orphanage complaining about the "fox demon" again. He frowned as he looked at the sky; the sun was already beginning to go down.

Looking back toward the orphanage, he decided that he no longer wanted to stay there anymore. He decided to leave right now, and used his newfound sensing abilities to avoid every single person on the way. He left the orphanage without looking back as he made his way towards the forest, not noticing that his whisker-like birthmarks had turned into actual whiskers nor the fact that his pupils had turned into slits.

* * *

Naruto wandered around in the forest, munching on some berries and some other leafy things. For some reason, he thought he heard a voice in his head telling him what was good to eat as he walked around foraging for food. It was definitely dark now; Naruto planned on climbing up a tree to sleep for the night, and then he would go find Hokage-jiji and tell him that he was planning to live in the forest from now on so no one would bother him anymore.

Suddenly, he heard twigs on the ground snapping. Naruto instantly stood as still as a statue at the sudden noise, not noticing the energy filling his body again.

He saw a strange ninja carrying a large bundle over his shoulder. Unconsciously focusing chakra into his eyes, he saw that the bundle was actually a dark-haired girl! She was tied up and gagged, and he could see tears falling from her eyes.

Without a second thought, Naruto jumped out towards the man.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing with that girl?!"

The ninja just stopped and stared. "What does it look like, kid? I'm kidnapping the Hyuuga heiress. Now get out of my way before I make you."

Naruto didn't know what a heiress was, but he certainly knew what a kidnapping was.

"Let go of her before I make you!" Naruto shouted.

"Oh? You think a brat like you can defeat a ninja?" The ninja simply dropped the girl on the ground and faced the boy.

This only made Naruto angrier as he ran towards the ninja, intending to jump up and punch him.

The nin was slightly caught off guard by the boy's speed but he quickly composed himself and punted Naruto out of the way.

"Tch, damn kids should know their place. I was making good time too." The ninja muttered as he turned around to pick up the girl again, but was interrupted when Naruto charged at him again with his fist raised.

The ninja just sighed as he turned around and punched the kid in the head. He almost felt bad, but he had a mission to do and he couldn't let his personal feelings get in the way.

The poor girl watched with tears flowing as she saw the boy weakly try to get back up again.

Naruto was starting to black out. As his vision faded, he thought he saw someone trapped inside a cage, shouting something at him.

The ninja sighed and turned around again to deal with the girl, only to find himself blasted to the ground by a sudden gust of wind. Turning around to see what happened, he saw the boy had changed.

The boy, who was previously wearing a T-shirt and shorts, was now wearing a strange blue robe, and his hair had grown into a ponytail reaching down to his shoulders, secured by a large blue ribbon. The biggest change was the presence of a pair of fox ears and a very large fox tail.

 _Shit, is this their Jinchuuriki? I didn't even feel any chakra from that!_ the ninja thought to himself as he flung a kunai at the boy. Even a three year old would be deadly with the power of a tailed beast active.

Before the kunai could hit their mark, however, a mirror appeared out of nowhere and blocked it.

"Kidnapping children? How despicable." The cold voice that came out of the boy's mouth was clearly that of a woman, and his eyes looked at the ninja as if looking at filth.

Tamamo, now in control of Naruto's body, rushed at the ninja with B-ranked agility, his three year old body proving to be a difficult target to hit as the enemy tried to cut him down with a kunai in hand.

Tamamo winced in pain as she waved her arm, commanding the floating mirror to bash the enemy. The sudden high-speed movement was literally breaking the poor boy's body, and she had to end it quickly and decisively.

She had the mirror hit the ninja in the back of the knee, forcing him down, before channeling magical energy for a spell.

 _"Jusō - Hyōten (Curse: Frigid Heaven)."_

An ofuda appeared underneath the ninja, bursting into ice and freezing his legs to the ground. Then she charged in and kicked the man in the crotch with her right leg, eliciting a high-pitched squeal from the poor man.

"This is repentance through crotch violence!"

The girl watched in amazement as Tamamo whirled around and kicked the man in the crotch again with her left leg, before executing a set of very excessively flashy backflips.

She dashed forwards before leaping high into the air, doing several front flips with her leg stretched out for a jump kick.

The ninja's eyes widened in horror as the outstretched leg reached closer and closer to his poor genitals.

" ** _Ippu-tasai Kyosei-ken (Polygamist Castration Fist)!_** "

Tamamo landed gracefully behind the man and held her fists to her sides, before the ground beneath the man inexplicably exploded.

The ninja screamed before passing out from the pain as Tamamo struggled to walk over to the girl and ripped off her bindings, the fox features and clothing already reverting to normal.

"Are you...okay..." Tamamo forced out before Naruto's body couldn't take the strain and passed out.


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry for the late update. I honestly wasn't expecting the amount of attention this fic got despite being less than 4000 words long, so I have a few things to say.**

 **First of all, I literally wrote this piece of fanfiction on a whim. I did almost no planning, the idea appeared in my mind and I acted on it, simple as that. The reason this fic even exists is because of the Halloween gacha on F/GO. With that being said, I have no intention of letting this fic die, especially not after getting all these reviews and follows.**

 **Secondly, after I uploaded the second chapter of this story, I immediately opened F/GO and attempted to roll for Tamamo. I managed to pull her after using 60 free quartz (which is all I had, to be honest), proving that having loyal readers backing up this catalyst of a story beats the desire sensor and RNG. Thanks to you all for beating the gacha for me. I promptly forgot about this story for a while afterwards because I was too busy ascending my shiny new Tamamo.**

 **On a side note, if you want to add me in F/GO you can shoot me a PM on here and I'll send you my friend code as long as I have space (I play the NA version).**

 **Thirdly, there won't be a super OP Naruto running around just because he has magic circuits, and he won't be learning any crazy magecraft or anything like that. Those are solely reserved for channeling Tamamo's powers (healing, transformations, etc.) because she is a Servant who runs off of magical energy. I've already committed to having her survive on natural energy and chakra, too late to change that now. The Kyubii would have pumped his chakra through Naruto's chakra pathways to unleash his powers, so similarly, Tamamo would have to channel her magical energy through magic circuits to provide her power.**

 **I had to take artistic license to bend the rules because Tamamo would simply fade from existence due to running out of energy. I mean, if you can stick a magical sheath into a boy and literally turn his existence into a sword, then surely having a Caster bonded to you since birth would cause a few changes too. So don't get too mad at me, this is a fanfiction anyways and that's part of the fun, right?**

 **Lastly, there won't be Naruto x Tamamo. Yes, it would be very easy to write it that way, her personality certainly makes that task simple. But then I thought, has there ever been a fanfic portraying her as a maternal figure? I like to think of it as 'diving into uncharted waters'. I've already accepted the fact that it's impossible to make all of my readers happy (** 'That's hell you're walking into." -A certain red Archer) **but I still like to try wild ideas anyways. Tamamo is labeled as an anti-hero with a Neutral Evil alignment, so having a kid like Naruto around would be good for her anyways, I think. After all, her legend doesn't exactly have a happy ending.**

 **You won't be seeing such a long A/N from me for a long time, probably, so enjoy the story now. As usual, thank you for your continued support.**

* * *

Naruto woke up, finding himself laying in a dark sewer. Ignoring the water on the floor, he got up and walked forward, with a strange nagging feeling in the back of his mind that this was supposed to be a familiar place.

He kept walking until he saw a massive cage in the distance. He squinted his eyes as he noticed something, no, there was _someone_ inside that cage. Determined to find out what was going on, he ran ahead.

Naruto slowed down as he reached the cage, panting hard as he tried to catch his breath. He looked up towards the cage to see a brown-eyed woman staring back at him with an expression of shock. She had pink hair, styled into two pigtails and secured with a large blue ribbon. She wore a rather revealing blue kimono-looking outfit, secured with a black sash adorned with fox tail patterns.

Perhaps the most striking features on her were the fox ears on her head and the very large fox tail poking out from behind her.

"You...you...mikon~!"

The strange fox woman ran forward with her arms wide open, only to crash into the bars of the seal face first as they moved closer together to keep her trapped inside.

"Ah, that hurt..."

The impact made her fall right on her butt, and she winced as she rubbed her sore face.

"W-where am I? And what are you doing here?" Naruto asked.

"Well, this is supposed to be your mind." she replied as Naruto jaw dropped. "And as for why I'm here, I was sealed into you since you were born, I think. Although I can't figure out why they would summon me just to do such a thing." she muttered the last part quietly to herself.

"What?! Why is my mind a sewer?" Naruto yelled. Evidently that was bit too much for a three year old boy to handle.

"Now, now. I'm sure we can get that sorted out in the future. Now come here, Naruto-chan!"

She pulled the boy through the seal and gave him a big hug.

"Mikon~! What a cute Master I have! I was expecting a handsome Master to appear and be my husband, but this is fine too!"

"Um...what's a master?" Naruto asked innocently.

"Err... I'll tell you about it when you're older." she replied with shifty eyes. "You're a bit young for this."

"Okay!" Naruto smiled as she wrapped her fluffy tail around his small body.

"Ah, this innocence of children..." she mumbled to herself, wondering why a child would have a Heroic Spirit bound to him, much less an anti-hero like herself.

"Oh no, what about that girl?" Naruto's eyes snapped wide open as the sudden realization struck him.

"Oh, that's right! Here."

Naruto watched as the fox woman held her hands out and sent a pulse of green energy through the seal.

"You should be fine for now, but your body will probably be hurting all over, especially your legs. Go find a doctor if you can, but even if you don't, I'll fix you up regardless so don't worry."

"Cool! Thanks...um... what's your name?" Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Her face briefly darkened for moment as thoughts began running through her head. Should she tell him her name? She could easily just call herself Caster and be done with it, or lie and make up some random name. After all, the people here looked Japanese, so it wouldn't be hard.

But looking at that innocent three-year old child, she couldn't bring herself to lie. Besides, if there was actually a Grail War going on, this child would have died a very long time ago. And Grail Wars certainly didn't go on for years.

"My name is Tamamo-no-Mae. But Tamamo is fine." Tamamo replied cheerfully.

"Thanks, Tamamo!" Naruto hugged her legs before vanishing from the mindscape.

Shaking her head, she sat down and focused on healing her Master once more. The magic circuits that lined the walls of the mindscape lit up in a familiar teal glow.

Narrowing her eyes, she stopped channeling magical energy. Almost immediately, the circuits died down into a gray color as they went inactive.

"Hmm."

Tamamo would have some experimenting to do later.

* * *

Hinata watched as the ninja knocked the blond boy to the ground when he tried to attack him with nothing but his fists. She tried to scream when the boy got up again, only to receive a punch to the head for his efforts. She had resigned herself to her fate as the ninja turned around to pick her up again.

By some miracle, it didn't happen.

She watched in amazement as a massive gust suddenly blew the ninja to the ground, the blond boy getting up once more and appeared to be morphing before her very eyes. His simple T-shirt and shorts turned into a strange blue robe; his blue eyes became a golden shade of brown. His blond hair lengthened and reached down to his shoulders, styled into a ponytail and secured by a large blue ribbon. Most noticeably, fox ears had sprouted from the top of his head, with a matching fox tail to go with it. All in all, he looked a bit feminine afterwards.

She thought it was the most magical thing she had ever seen.

She watched as the ninja threw a kunai at the boy, only to be stopped by some sort of strange mirror. She cheered as the boy moved inhumanly fast, forcing the man down and freezing his legs to the ground. She stared in awe as the man was brought down by a triple ball-buster combo of kicks, complete with a dramatic ending pose and inexplicable explosion in the background, the sight burned into her very impressionable three year old mind.

Then the boy had tore off her bindings, asked her if she was okay, and promptly passed out. His fox ears and tail, mirror, and clothing all dissolved into golden motes of light, leaving behind an ordinary blond boy wearing a T-shirt and shorts. Which now brings us back to the present.

Understandably, Hinata proceeded to freak out. She couldn't just leave the boy here and run back into the village, not after what he had done for her. On the other hand, staying next to the fallen ninja was potentially dangerous, since he could wake up at any time. She quickly turned the boy over so he was laying on his back.

Hinata gasped as the boy's entire body was red. His body felt unnaturally hot, and his limbs were all badly bruised, especially his legs. Evidently, the ability to move at such ridiculous speeds did not come without a cost.

Deciding that getting away from the ninja was the right thing to do, she slowly moved the boy's body until they were both behind a tree a fair distance away. Then, all she could do was wait. She was surprised to see that some of the bruises had already disappeared, and the redness on his body was beginning to fade.

Idly, she began poking at the whisker marks on the boy's face. She gave a soft "Eep!" as the boy began to stir. Blue eyes met lavender eyes as he awoke.

"Are you okay?" the boy asked as he slowly sat up.

"I am, b-but you're h-hurt." Hinata replied.

 _Give me a few moments, your legs should be fit for walking soon._

"What?" the boy asked out loud.

"I-is something wrong?" Hinata asked.

 _We can talk now! I can see what you see too, Naruto-chan. Don't answer me out loud, or else people might think you're crazy._

 _Hehe, sorry. This is just kind of weird._ Naruto replied.

"I'm fine. Let's go, um, what's your name?"

"A-ano, m-my name is H-Hyuuga Hinata." Hinata replied while poking her fingers together.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto! Let's get out of here now, Hinata-chan!"

Naruto grabbed Hinata's hand, eliciting a small blush from the girl as they ran in the direction of the village. As they passed by the ninja on the ground, Tamamo recommended that Naruto should kick the man between the legs again to made sure that he stayed down. The boy obliged, landing a solid kick and making the man squeal again before he fell back down. Surprisingly, Hinata walked up to the man and stomped him in the balls, making Naruto wince and made Tamamo wonder if she had inadvertently been a bad influence on the girl.

After a few more minutes, Naruto had healed enough to run at full speed, and they quickly ran towards some familiar looking people that Hinata recognized.

"Hinata-sama!" A few Branch family members saw the two children running towards them, and quickly made sure that they were alright. One of them ran off to get the clan head and the Hokage.

Soon enough, Hiashi and his wife Hitomi arrived, with the Hokage right behind them.

"Hinata!" Hitomi quickly ran towards her daughter. "Are you hurt?"

"I-I'm fine, but Naruto-kun..."

"Old man!" Naruto grinned at old man Sarutobi.

The Hokage was surprised that Naruto was involved. "Naruto? What are you doing here?"

Naruto was catching his breath as he replied. "Saved Hinata-chan...from...evil man..."

"And where might this evil man be now?" the Hokage asked.

The two children pointed in the direction that they came from. The Hokage motioned with his hand, and several ANBU instantly appeared.

"You know what to do. Secure the kidnapper and take him to Ibiki."

They all saluted and quickly left to do their job.

The Hokage whispered something to Hiashi and his wife, and they all nodded.

"We think you should both get some rest now. I'll drop by tomorrow and you can both tell me your story when you're rested, okay?" the Hokage asked kindly.

The children nodded, and Hitomi took her daughter's hand and led them back towards their clan compound.

"A-ano...is Naruto-kun going to stay with us?" Hinata asked.

"Of course, dear. The clan owes him now. He'll be our little guest of honor." Hitomi smiled, noticing that they hadn't let go of each other's hand since they arrived.

 _Good job, Naruto-chan! Now you have a whole clan that owes you!_ Tamamo cheered while Naruto just grinned.

* * *

Once they arrived, Hitomi proceeded to give the two children a much-needed bath, before dressing them up in some nice pajamas. By that time, most of Naruto's bruises were gone, and he would be perfectly fine in the morning.

She wondered where she would let Naruto sleep, before deciding that she would just have him sleep next to Hinata. She couldn't wait to see her husband's face when he saw them laying together!

Tucking the two into their bed, Hitomi kissed her daughter on her forehead and bowed to Naruto.

"Thank you very much for saving my daughter, Naruto. If there's anything I can do for you, just let me know."

"Hehe, it was nothing." Naruto replied while scratching the back of his head. In reality, he didn't actually remember much of what he did, but he was sure that Hinata and Tamamo would fill him in later.

"What a modest boy you are. I'll see you both in the morning, then." Hitomi turned off the lights before slipping out of the room quietly, making sure that the Hyuuga guards were on high alert as they patrolled the vicinity.

"G-good night, Naruto-kun." Hinata clutched her teddy bear to her body and stuck her thumb in her mouth before drifting off to sleep.

"Good night, Hinata-chan." Naruto replied as he yawned.

 _If you need me, just call out to me and I'll be here. I'll be filling up my magical reserves while you sleep._

 _Wow, you know magic? Cool!_

 _Yes, but that'll be our little secret, okay? I don't want you to run around telling people._

 _Okay! I'll never tell anyone!_

 _Very good, now get to sleep, okay?_

Naruto just yawned as he leaned back into his pillow.

* * *

Naruto woke up in the middle of the night to hear a soft sobbing sound coming from the girl next to him.

 _Tamamo, are you there?_

 _Hmm? What is it, Naruto-chan?_

 _Hinata-chan is crying._ Naruto frowned and turned his head towards Hinata so Tamamo could get a clear view of what he was seeing.

 _I think she's having a nightmare. Maybe you should wake her up._

Naruto turned her over and began poking at her cheeks until she woke up.

"What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" Naruto whispered.

"I-I was having a dream about t-the bad man..." Hinata poked her fingers together.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you, dattebayo! Then when we get stronger we'll go beat up all the bad people!"

"O-okay..." Hinata lay back down on the bed as Tamamo thought about how inadvertently romantic that was, even for a three year old.

 _Here, try covering her with this._

As the two settled down to go back to sleep again, Tamamo channeled a bit of mana to materialize a large fox tail from Naruto's body. She made the tail wrap around the both of them. Hinata gave off a small "Eep!" as the large fluffy tail suddenly surrounded her, but it was soft and warm, and soon the two of them snuggled into each other as they nodded off into dreamland.

* * *

Tamamo was sitting inside her seal, drawing in natural energy to replenish her magical reserves that were spent on healing Naruto earlier. Now was the best time to do so, since drawing in energy while he was mostly unmoving made the job much easier, and the seal had loosened ever so slightly after the earlier incident, letting her draw in energy more rapidly and allowed her to communicate with her young Master through a mental link.

So you could imagine her surprise when not one, but two children suddenly appeared in the mindscape.

Naruto woke up first, finding himself laying down in front of the cage with a very surprised Tamamo looking back at him. Next to him was Hinata, who was beginning to stir.

"Ano, w-where are we?" she asked as she looked at Naruto, then turned to see a strange fox woman standing behind bars.

"Woah! What are you doing inside my mind, Hinata-chan?"

"W-what?" Hinata was very confused by what was happening.

"It's true." Tamamo spoke up. "Somehow, you've linked your mind to his."

"W-who are you?" Hinata asked.

"Oh, silly me. I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Tamamo-no-Mae, but you can just call me Tamamo. I've been sealed into Naruto since he was born. I'm not sure why, but that's how it is."

"I-I'm Hyuuga Hinata." Hinata introduced herself with a bow.

"What a polite child. Don't worry, we're all friends here." Tamamo smiled at the small girl.

"Yeah, she's really nice. She helped me save you earlier too!"

Naruto walked through the bars, and Hinata followed after a brief moment of hesitation.

"S-so the f-fox ears a-and tail are yours?" Hinata asked.

"That's right. Naruto-chan wanted to save you so bad, so I used my magic to give him the strength to fight the man off. It really hurt his body, though, so I won't be doing that again anytime soon."

"T-thank you for saving me!" Hinata bowed again.

"It was no problem, Hinata-chan." Naruto grinned.

"Can you promise not to tell anyone about me, Hinata-chan? I'm doing this for Naruto-chan's safety and if people find out that magic is real, then bad people might try to take him away, okay?" Tamamo asked.

"I-I promise! I don't want anyone to take Naruto-kun away!" Hinata looked absolutely horrified at the possibility.

"Very good!" Tamamo pat the girl on the head. "Now, I know that those adults will probably ask questions tomorrow. You can tell them what you saw during the incident, but pretend this conversation never happened, okay? If anyone asks, we never met."

The two children just nodded.

"Now, you've both had a long day." Tamamo had the both of them sit on her lap and wrapped her tail around them. "Get some rest, okay? I'll see you both tomorrow."

Immediately the two children began to doze off while Tamamo just smiled.

* * *

 _The next morning..._

Hitomi quietly slid the door open as she peeked inside to check on the children. She looked on in shock before giving a squeal of delight as she saw the two children cuddling together, with a large fox tail wrapped around the two. She immediately ran off to get her husband, and maybe grab a camera too while she was at it.

Along the way, she ran past Hiashi's twin brother, Hizashi.

"Hitomi-sama, is something wrong? I see that you are in a rush."

The woman ignored him as she muttered something about Hinata and a camera. Deciding to see for himself, he walked over to Hinata's room and looked inside, to find the Hyuuga heiress snuggling up to Naruto, who wrapped a fluffy fox tail around them both.

A female branch family member saw Hizashi staring into Hinata's room and decided to walk over to see what was going on. Like Hitomi before her, she also squealed at the cute scene.

"Go bring me a camera, please." Hizashi asked.

"Of course, Hizashi-sama." the woman replied as she quickly ran off to grab a camera.

At around the same time, the Hokage decided to pay a visit to the Hyuuga compound.

"Greetings, Hokage-sama. What can we do for you?" one of the guards asked.

"Is Hiashi-sama available right now?" the Hokage asked.

"I believe that Hiashi-sama is busy with some work related to yesterday's incident. Shall I fetch him for you, Hokage-sama?"

"No, there is no rush. If you would be so kind as to bring me to the children, I would like to see how they are doing."

"Of course, Hokage-sama. Please follow me."

The Hokage followed as the guard led the way towards Hinata's room, only to see a large group of clan members crowding outside for some reason.

"Is something going on here?" the Hokage asked as everyone made room for him to look through the door.

After about five seconds of staring, the Hokage stuck out his hand.

"Camera, please."

"Here you go, Hokage-sama." Hizashi put a camera into the Hogake's hand, which he immediately used to start snapping photos.

By the time Hitomi returned with her husband in tow, practically the whole clan was gathered in that one hallway, with several members holding cameras. The ones that couldn't see into Hinata's room had their Byakugan active to look through the walls.

Hiashi was surprised to see the clan elders there as well. Hell, even the Hokage himself was there. He quietly slipped through the crowd and looked inside to see what the commotion was all about. He only had one word to say.

"Cute."

They all agreed on one thing that day, even if they didn't know it, but they knew that the blond-haired boy was no demon.


	4. Chapter 4

Sarutobi Hiruzen watched as the two sleeping children slowly woke up. After the initial fawning over the cute children had died down, the clan members had started discussing among themselves over whether the tail that appeared on Naruto was a sign that the demon fox was breaking out.

Of course, the Hokage had told them all that if the demon really was breaking loose, then they would be fighting for their lives instead of standing around peacefully, which seemed to mostly put their concerns to rest, at least for now. Besides, that vile chakra of the demon would have been leaking all over the place, and it wouldn't take a sensor to feel the rage and hate contained in it. The older members of the clan remembered the feeling of the fox's chakra, and they would certainly know if it got out again.

Naruto was the first to wake up, and grinned when he saw the old man looking back at him. He tried to move his tail, but Hinata was gripping it rather tightly and wouldn't let go. Tamamo ended up letting the tail dissolve back into mana, and Hiruzen watched with interest as it faded away into golden motes of light. Hinata started waking up when she realized that her fluffy tail wasn't there anymore.

 _Interesting,_ Hiruzen thought to himself. _I've never seen Kushina materialize a tail like that before. I wonder if Naruto gained a small measure of control over the fox's power, even if he doesn't know it._

"Good morning, Naruto-kun. How are you feeling?" Hiruzen asked.

"I feel great, old man!"

The old man just chuckled. "That's good to know. I see your injuries are healed. Could you take off your shirt so I can see if your body is fine?"

"Sure." Naruto complied and removed his top.

"Now just close your eyes, this won't take long." Hiruzen made hand seals for the Mystical Palm technique and ran it over his body. While Naruto had his eyes closed, he poked a finger at the boy's stomach, making seal markings appear on his skin. He quickly did a check on the seal.

 _The seal looks perfectly fine for now. There shouldn't be any trouble,_ he thought to himself.

Pulling back his hands, he allowed Naruto to pull his clothes back on as Hinata got out of bed.

"Wow, I didn't know you were a doctor, jiji!"

"People used to call me "The Professor". I know every jutsu in this village except clan techniques."

"C-can you teach me?" Naruto asked with wide eyes.

"Maybe when you're older, I will. Ah, good morning, Hinata-chan."

"G-good morning, Hokage-sama."

"I believe your mother wants you both to go and eat breakfast. Why don't the both of you get ready? She'll be here soon." Hiruzen asked and both children nodded.

"By the way, Naruto. I don't know if you're aware of it, but you should avoid showing your fox ears and tail in public, especially not when there are villagers around."

"Huh? Why?" Naruto asked.

"The villagers can become...afraid... if they saw. They fear what they do not understand."

Naruto scrunched up his face, deep in thought.

 _Just do what he says, Naruto-chan._

"Okay, I'll do it, old man!"

"Very good. I'll drop by later today." Hiruzen replied before exiting the room.

The two children changed into the clothes that were left for them next to the bed, and Hinata spoke up.

"A-ano, what was that strange mark on your belly?" Hinata asked.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Naruto asked as he lifted up his shirt, seeing nothing out of the ordinary.

"T-the Hokage poked your stomach, l-like this." Hinata poked at Naruto's stomach, but nothing happened besides making him laugh.

"T-that tickles!" Naruto choked out.

"S-sorry..." Hinata poked her fingers together.

"It's fine." Naruto grinned. "Let's go!"

* * *

Hinata watched in shock at the speed that Naruto was eating his food, while Hitomi looked on with a bemused expression.

"I was really hungry," Naruto explained sheepishly.

"We are going to teach you some manners later, young man." Hitomi jokingly scolded.

Hinata giggled while her mother just smiled.

"Where's otou-san?" Hinata asked.

"He's in a council meeting with the Hokage, dear. They're...talking about the ninja who tried to kidnap you. It turns out he was from Kumogakure."

Hinata just stayed silent while Naruto spoke up.

"But the old man's gonna send him away, right?"

"Of course. The Hokage will deal with it, so don't worry."

The rest of the breakfast was eaten in comfortable silence.

* * *

The Hokage had just finished penning a very strongly worded letter to the Raikage. To think the ambassador, who was also their head ninja, would try to kidnap the Hyuuga heiress on the same day the peace treaty between Kumo and Konoha was signed...

The Raikage had demanded that they send the ninja that attacked their own ninja, no doubt expecting a Hyuuga, and the Hokage had cheekily replied that it was no ninja that attacked, but rather a three year old boy. There was no way in hell that Hiruzen would hand Naruto over to them, and for once the council seemed to be in agreement.

They would end up being the laughing stock of the shinobi world once the word got out to the other villages. The Hokage knew that Konoha had the upper hand in this incident and the fact that Kumo broke a treaty as soon as it was signed and their head ninja got beaten by a three year old would deliver a very heavy blow to their reputation. Since the head ninja wasn't killed and had information interrogated out of him, Kumo couldn't demand the body of a Konoha-nin either.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was no warmonger and so he did not dissolve the peace treaty. However, he made it very clear that Kumo-nin were no longer welcome in Fire Country and trespassers would be dealt with harshly.

Sighing to himself, he rolled up the scroll he was writing on and had his secretary deal with it, before exiting his office. Maybe he would take Naruto out for lunch or something.

* * *

Naruto stood with Hiashi as they watched various clan members train in their Juuken, or Gentle Fist.

 _Well, that's interesting. To think that those light taps can cause so much internal damage._ Tamamo noted.

"Wow, cool! Can I learn to fight like that?"

"Unfortunately, I am afraid not. The Juuken is unique to our clan, and requires our eyes, the Byakugan, to perform."

"What's that?" Naruto asked in confusion.

"It is our bloodline," Hiashi replied as veins bulged near his eyes. "It allows us to see 360 degrees around us and lets us see through objects. We can also see chakra and the tenketsu along the chakra pathways."

Hiashi forgot that he was talking to a three year old, judging by the blank look on Naruto's face, although Tamamo understood some of it.

"Basically, it lets us see all around us without having to turn our heads." Hiashi simplified his explanation for Naruto's benefit.

"That's amazing!" Naruto replied with stars in his eyes.

 _Wow, what a cheat skill. Seeing through objects too. Those remind me of Mystic Eyes... I wonder what tenketsu are..._

"You may not be able to use our Juuken, but I'm sure that the basic Academy Style taijutsu will serve you well. Eventually you'll learn another style that suits you, that won't require our special eyes."

Naruto looked a bit disappointed, but he quickly got over it.

 _Hey, Tamamo. Do you know fighting styles?_

 _Eh? Well I have my own style which I created myself. And then there's the Polygamist Castration Fist. Perfect for dealing with perverts._ Tamamo replied proudly.

 _C-Can you teach me?_ Naruto asked, even though he didn't know what "polygamist" or "castration" meant.

 _Hmm... I think I can start teaching you when they start training you in this "Academy Style". It sounds basic, which should give you a good start. Eh? But then I'll have to give up my appearance of a frail maiden..._

While Tamamo started rambling to herself mentally and Naruto was trying to calm her down, the Hokage walked in.

"Hokage-sama. Are you well?" Hiashi greeted with a small bow. The Hokage didn't have his hat on, indicating that he wasn't here for any official business.

"I am well, Hiashi-sama. I just completed another pile of paperwork. Recent events have created plenty of it, as you might imagine." The Hokage replied, as Hiashi nodded sympathetically. As a clan head, he had his own fair share of paperwork as well.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Hiashi asked.

"I just wanted to take young Naruto here for a walk around the village, and take him out for lunch while I'm at it."

"I'm sure he'll agree. Isn't that right, Naruto?"

"Huh? Of course I'll go with you, old man! Can Hinata-chan come too?"

The Hokage raised an eyebrow. "Of course she is welcome to come along. If her father approves, that is."

Naruto did his best impression of puppy-eyes that even Hiashi couldn't say no to, not that he was planning on refusing the boy in the first place.

"Hinata is with her mother in that room down the hallway. Go ahead and ask her to come with you."

Naruto smiled and took off running to find his friend while the Hokage just looked amused.

"Hokage-sama, if I may propose something to you."

"Hm? What sort of proposal is it?"

"I would like to take in Naruto. He deserves better."

The Hokage had a look of deep thought on his face.

"You know that the boy is not allowed to be affiliated with any clan, for obvious reasons."

"I do not wish to adopt the boy, or to make him into a Hyuuga. I merely wish to provide him with shelter, even for a little while."

"Well...it does seem that Naruto ran away from the orphanage that night, from what I have heard from the ninja I sent there to investigate. It appears that his life there was very lonesome." the Hokage replied while looking at the sky. "To be honest, if I could have my way, I'd have taken the boy in myself, politics be damned."

"My wife was quite adamant about this, and my daughter has grown quite attached to the boy. We both heard from Hinata about the injuries the boy received, he was in a lot of pain, even if the injuries have healed due to the fox's power."

"Ah, yes. It would seem that he can exert some control over the fox's power, since it seemed that he did not go out of control at all. Judging from the injuries he inflicted on the kidnapper, it would seem that he was quite...coordinated."

"The Hyuuga owe him a debt, and I don't intend to leave it unpaid. The boy's actions have changed my opinion of him. He has saved my daughter from a fate worse than death, which is why I implore you to provide your support, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage closed his eyes before replying. "Very well. I owe it to the boy, and the Yondaime as well, since he wanted the boy to be seen as a hero. For the both of them, I'll fight the council."

"Thank you very much, Hokage-sama. Also, it seems my wife and brother have figured out his parentage, judging by his last name and his appearance..."

"And you will remember that his lineage is an S-class secret, punishable by death if exposed." The Hokage sighed. "I have told absolutely no one of this secret, and I would like to keep it that way. And I believe those that knew Kushina also know very well why it is to be never spoken of in public. I don't want to draw any attention to him, especially from abroad. I would not want foreign villages to start sending assassins after him. Even if I did reveal his lineage to the public, I am afraid that the villagers are too deeply rooted in their hate to treat him any differently."

"Do you intend on telling Naruto?"

"I will tell him when he's ready. He is still too young to understand, and I'd rather not have him deal with his burden or his family tree just yet. You've seen how he acts, the poor boy is starving for attention."

"I cannot blame him for that." Hiashi sighed.

"I try to talk to him when I can make time in my schedule. Perhaps I should get Jiraiya to come back and see the child."

"It would be good for him to have more people he can be close to in his life."

"Anyways, I'll accept your proposal. I trust that you have prepared a place for him to stay in your compound?"

"There is a small unused cottage next to the main building of the compound. It is not in the best condition at the moment, but I can easily send for some people to renovate it properly. In the meantime, I will have Naruto stay with my family. Afterwards, I'll have some clan members assigned to watch over the boy once he gets situated into his new home."

"Do you believe that your clan will accept the boy? Remember that you also have to provide Naruto with the proper education. I would like it if he became a ninja, and I'm certain that his parents would wish for the same thing. I don't think that the civilians would ever understand him."

"Judging by the reaction this morning, I would say that the majority of them don't mind his presence. As a matter of fact, I believe that some of the younger members in the clan have taken quite the liking to him. The older members will need some time before they accept him, but I believe they will tolerate his presence at the very least."

"That's good to hear. I'll fund the cost of his stay. I want to reinforce the image that he isn't dependent on your clan to live, but merely living on your land, which could lessen some of the possible complaints from the council. If he's anything like his parents, I'm certain that he will do well."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama. He will be sheltered as a guest of the clan and be provided with a proper education to be prepared for the academy."

"No, thank _you,_ Hiashi. You've done a great service for the boy."

* * *

The Hokage walked through the village, with two children in tow. Naruto and Hinata took in the surroundings with wide eyes. Hinata never left the compound much, while Naruto was usually cooped up in the orphanage.

Hiruzen noticed that most of the villagers seemed to be glaring at Naruto and frowned, but at least he knew that no one would dare to try anything with him around. Especially with the ANBU he had following him and the children around.

Naruto and Hinata also seemed to notice the glares, although they didn't know why the villagers were doing it. Tamamo also noticed it and frowned.

"Ne, ne, what does the Hokage do, old man?" Naruto asked as they continued to walk around the village. Truth be told, Tamamo was also quite curious. Obviously the old man was quite important if he could walk around people's clan compounds and order masked ninja around.

The old man looked up in thought as he decided how to best explain the position of Hokage to a three year old.

"The Hokage is the leader of the village, and is considered to be the strongest ninja in the village as well."

"But, but you're so old!"

"You don't get to live this long without knowing some tricks up your sleeves. It's precisely because I'm strong that I got to live to be this old." The Hokage chuckled at the looks of amazement on both of the children's faces.

"But the Hokage doesn't just lead the people. He must also guide and protect the village as well. The village is like one big family, so when the ninjas of this village fight, they not only fight for the village, but also to protect their comrades and loved ones. This is why Konoha is the strongest ninja village."

He pat the children on the head as they looked up at him in awe.

"Now, why don't we go get some food?" he asked and they both nodded.

"Hmm...what to eat for lunch." the Hokage muttered to himself. However, Naruto caught the scent of something good.

"What's that, old man?" Naruto pointed at a nearby stall.

"It's called ramen. Have you two ever tried ramen before?" he asked, and both children shook their heads.

"Very well, let's head there, then. I'm sure you'll like it."

He helped the two children onto the tall stools as a young girl and an older man appeared from behind the stall.

"Welcome to Ichiraku's Ramen- H-Hokage-sama?"

"Indeed it is," the Hokage replied with a grin. "I was taking these two out for lunch when this young man smelled something delicious nearby. Why don't the both of you introduce yourselves?"

"M-my name is H-Hyuuga Hinata." Hinata gave a small bow.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto copied Hinata and gave a small bow as well.

"Such polite children! I'm Ichiraku Teuchi, and this is my daughter Ayame." The both of the bowed back.

"This is their first time eating ramen. Why don't you recommend something for them?" the Hokage asked.

"First time eating ramen? Your first bowls will be on the house today! Miso ramen is always a good choice. What would you like, Hokage-sama?"

"I'll take one miso ramen as well, then."

"Very well, three miso ramen coming right up."

Soon enough, three piping hot bowls of ramen appeared and they all dug in.

Hinata thought it was delicious, Naruto thought it was the most amazing thing that he'd ever eaten.

Everyone watched in amazement as Naruto appeared to be inhaling the contents of the bowl. Even Tamamo was surprised that the boy was capable of eating that fast.

"Wow, that was so good! Can I have another?"

* * *

Hinata and Hiruzen both ate one bowl while Naruto downed two bowls.

The Hokage pulled out some ryo and paid for the food. They all waved goodbye to the nice people at the ramen stand and promised to come back some other time.

"Now, it's time to take you both back to the compound. I have good news for you, Naruto. Hinata's father has agreed to let you stay with his family. Once you get back, he'll tell you the details."

"Y-you mean I don't have to go back to the orphanage anymore?!"

Hiruzen nodded as Naruto began jumping for joy.

"We can stay together, Hinata!" Naruto excitedly hugged Hinata, who was more subdued but equally happy and hugged him back.

He just smiled at the happy children before leading them back.

"Hey, old man. Can you show us a cool technique?"

"Well, I guess we have a bit of time to spare."

He racked his mind for a technique that was sufficiently flashy without being too destructive.

"Hm, this should do." Hiruzen muttered as he pulled out a shuriken.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Three more copies of the Hokage appeared while the two children watched with their mouths open. All four Hokages gently threw their shuriken forward.

"Shuriken Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Instantly, the four shuriken suddenly became twelve shuriken as they all fell down onto the ground. When the clones all dispelled, only the original real shuriken was embedded in the ground, but the ground was littered with marks left by the cloned shuriken.

 _Wow, that was impressive. I wonder if I could learn the jutsus in this world._

 _Yeah, we can learn together, Tamamo!_

"Wow, that was so awesome, jiji! Can you show me how to do that?" Naruto asked excitedly. Hinata wasn't quite as expressive but on the inside she also wanted to get stronger.

"Maybe when you're both older, I'll teach you both how to do that. In the meantime, work hard and get strong, okay?" the Hokage replied, and both children nodded enthusiastically.

"Come on now, let's be on our way." The Hokage started walking again with each of them holding hands.

* * *

After they arrived safely at the front gates, Hiashi took the children in while Hitomi thanked the Hokage profusely for allowing them to care for Naruto. The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. Hitomi spent time with the two of them, and Naruto somehow managed to end up with a group of branch family members chasing after him in the training grounds. He had only been in the Hyuuga compound for less than a day and he was already making the whole place more lively.

Eventually it was bedtime, so as usual, Hitomi tucked Hinata, along with Naruto, into their little bed. Hiashi raised an eyebrow as he watched his daughter automatically latch on to Naruto as soon as his wife backed away from the bed, followed by Naruto wrapping his tail around her.

"Don't you think they're so cute? It's almost as though they're talking to each other in their dreams!" Hitomi was fawning over the children, as usual. Little did she know how spot on her last statement was.

But still, Hiashi thought to himself, the son of a kage wasn't so bad. Considering the alternatives that the clan elders would undoubtedly try to push onto his daughter when she was older, she could honestly do a lot worse. The only issue was that it was an S-ranked secret, making it basically impossible to convince the clan council with.

 _I'll just deal with it when the time comes,_ Hiashi thought to himself as he walked into his bedroom with his wife.

* * *

 **Don't worry, there will be a time skip in the next chapter so things will start to pick up.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Happy Thanksgiving everyone.**

* * *

The next few years went by relatively peacefully. Hiashi got the old cottage renovated and cleaned up. It was a bit large considering its' only resident was a young boy, but he would eventually grow into it. A maid from the branch family named Natsu was assigned to watch over Naruto and educate him along with teaching him manners. She was a young woman with short, dark green hair who was a tad wary of the boy at first, but her fears were unfounded as he proved himself to be a nice, energetic little boy who happened to have the ability to grow fox ears and a tail every once in a while.

Hinata was slightly disheartened that Naruto would have to 'move out', so to speak, but in all honesty the cottage was only a short walk away from the main compound. He still ate with Hinata's family, and he would often sneak back into Hinata's room at night, much to Hiashi's chagrin.

Of course, whatever Naruto learned, Tamamo also learned. Things like basic history as well as how ninja society worked were all quickly picked up by Tamamo during Naruto's day-to-day life in order to look out for her Master better. Normally this sort of basic knowledge would automatically be provided by the Grail, but due to the abnormal summoning she received no such thing. At least the people here just happened to speak and write Japanese, even if Japan didn't actually exist here. It would have been a massive pain if she couldn't communicate with people here.

When were almost five years old, they began to learn the basics of taijutsu. Hinata was instructed in Juuken, as expected, while a main family guard named Ko was assigned to teach Naruto the basic Academy style. By that time, Hitomi was already pregnant with a second child, and would probably give birth in a few months.

Naruto and Hinata also developed what seemed to be a habit of taking naps under a tree together to outsiders, but in reality they were conversing with Tamamo inside Naruto's mindscape while looking like they were simply resting under the shade of a tree, with Naruto's tail wrapped around Hinata. They had come to the conclusion that coming into physical contact with the manifestation of Tamamo's tail allowed Naruto to pull the person into his mindscape, although he hadn't tried it on anyone but Hinata at the moment. In all honesty, there wasn't much to talk about to a pair of five year olds, although Tamamo was very happy to spend time with the pair, as she wouldn't get much human contact otherwise.

Unfortunately, during the last few months, Hitomi seemed to be in rather poor health. Naruto turned to Tamamo to see if she could cure her with her magic.

 _If you can get physical contact with her, then I might be able to do something._

He quickly relayed this information to Hinata, and they made a plan. Tamamo preferred to keep her magecraft hidden as long as possible, so it had to be discrete. All they had to do was to get into a group hug. If Naruto asked for a hug out of the blue, it might have been a bit strange, but if Hinata was the one asking then it wouldn't be strange at all. It was a very simplistic plan, but they were only five years old.

So after their daily taijutsu training, the two of them ran off to check on Hinata's mother.

Hitomi looked up from her tea as she saw the two children enter the room.

"Hello, children. Are you done with your training today?" she asked.

Hinata nodded, while Naruto commented on her tired appearance. "You look tired today, auntie."

Hitomi leaned back a bit. "I've been feeling rather tired lately. I hope I'm not getting sick."

"We hope you get well soon." Hinata leaned in and hugged her mother, and Naruto did the same. Immediately, Tamamo got to work, pushing Od into magic circuits as soon as contact was made. The energy flowed into Hitomi's body without her noticing at all. Using magecraft with someone else's body was a strange experience for the fox maiden, but there's a first time for everything.

The hug lasted for several seconds before they pulled away.

"Go on, you two. I'll see you both at dinner, alright?"

Both children nodded and ran off.

 _Huh, I feel better now._ Hitomi thought to herself.

* * *

They ran back to Hinata's room to see what Tamamo had learned. Sitting on the bed, Naruto immediately summoned the fox tail and wrapped it around her, pulling her into his mindscape.

The sewer of his mindscape had been breaking apart slowly over the past few years. The walls were crumbling, and the ceiling above had several large holes revealing a bright blue sky beyond the confines of the sewer and rays of sunlight managed to get in through the cracks. The ground wasn't wet anymore, either, which was nice. Unfortunately, the seal itself held tight as always.

"Tamamo!"

The children ran through the bars as usual to greet her.

"Hey, you two." Tamamo smiled and put her hands on their heads.

"D-did you find out what's wrong with my mother?" Hinata asked nervously.

Tamamo frowned. "Someone has been using a slow acting poison on her, designed to weaken the body without killing her outright. I have no idea how long this has been going on for, but if the effects are starting to get noticeable, then it must have been happening for a long time now."

Hinata and Naruto's eyes widened in horror.

"Who would want to do that to auntie?! She's a nice lady!" Naruto shouted.

"Don't worry, she's in no danger right now. During that hug you shared I was able to remove a good amount of the poison, it wasn't too difficult. And as to why people would do that to her..."

Tamamo lowered her head in thought for a bit, before a realization hit her.

"She's the wife of the clan head. If someone was unhappy about the way the Hyuuga clan is run..."

Hinata's eyes widened. "Okaa-san always talks about how she wants to removed the Caged Bird Seal from the clan."

"Caged Bird Seal? What's that?" Naruto asked.

"Our clan is split into the main and branch families. The branch family is supposed to protect the main family, and they wear the Caged Bird Seal on their foreheads to prevent their eyes from being stolen if they die. If a main family member does this," Hinata made a strange hand seal, "it makes them hurt a lot." Hinata explained sadly.

"That's basically a slave seal!" Tamamo exclaimed. "How can a family do this to their own?"

"So that's why I see some Hyuugas wear headbands and stuff! That's terrible!" Naruto shouted.

"That narrows down our suspects. If a main family member was unhappy with Hitomi's way of thinking, then they might want to remove her quietly, although I don't see how a poison that doesn't kill would factor into their plans." Tamamo muttered quietly. "I suppose we'll need to make a plan."

"What about the baby? Will the baby be alright?" Hinata asked.

"The baby should be fine. Judging by how long she has been pregnant, I'd say the baby should come along in about a month or so." Tamamo replied.

Hinata sighed in relief. "I was worried that something bad would happen to the baby if okaa-san's body was too weak."

"Well, the body of a woman tends to be the weakest during... childbirth..." Tamamo's voice began to trail off.

"Oh, hell."

* * *

Naruto was currently hiding on the ceiling of the Hyuuga kitchen in the form of a small fly. After Tamamo had gone over the possibilities of places to poison people discreetly, it seemed that food and drink would be the most likely culprit. She instructed Hinata to keep acting as though nothing had happened while she used her A-ranked Shapeshift skill to morph Naruto into a fly to keep an eye on what went on in the kitchen. Tamamo was very reluctant to let a pair of five year olds attempt to hunt down a would be assassin, and wished that they would simply run off to find an adult they could trust to report this to, but the two children had been surprisingly stubborn about this, so in the end she gave in. She supposed that convincing people that someone was poisoning the food without hard evidence would have been difficult, anyways.

She didn't really like using her Shapeshift skill very much, but it was the easiest way to do what was basically an infiltration mission and she wouldn't refuse to use her powers if it would aid her precious Master. She knew that Hinata and her parents were practically family to Naruto, so she would help defend them as well, even if they didn't know it.

Naruto and Tamamo watched as servants prepared various dishes. Under Tamamo's watchful eye, they made sure that none of them were slipping in anything suspicious to the food or drink as they cooked. As a good wife, Tamamo was well versed in cooking Japanese dishes, not that anyone in this world knew what a Japan was, and she would be able to pick up on anything out of the ordinary. Although one thing in particular did stick out in the kitchens, which was the tray of cinnamon buns that Hitomi and Hinata enjoyed every once in a while. She wasn't sure how cinnamon buns got into a place that was so similar to Japan, and made a mental note to find out where those came from.

They watched as a servant dusted the cinnamon buns with powered sugar before putting tray aside for another servant to deliver to the dinner table. Naruto was about to look away when he noticed that the man who was supposed to carry the tray away sprinkled some strange white powder on the buns before carrying it off.

Immediately, Naruto slowly flew towards the man as he heard hushed whispers from around the corner.

"Are you sure this powder is working? It's been months now."

"Be patient, it's not like anyone can notice the extra powder on the cinnamon buns anyway. We still need her to deliver a more suitable heir, and once she does, she won't be needed anymore."

That was all they needed to hear as Naruto flew away, though Tamamo was silently amazed at Naruto's incredible luck.

* * *

Naruto quietly stepped into the the room, where the Hiashi, Hitomi, and Hinata were already sitting around the dining table.

"You're late, Naruto." Hiashi stated.

"I'm sorry, I had to go to the bathroom before coming here." Naruto bowed a bit.

"Very well. Have a seat." _Looks like those lessons in manners have helped a bit,_ Hiashi thought to himself.

Naruto took his usual seat next to Hinata and brushed his hand against hers to let her know that he found something.

"Don't worry, the food just arrived, so you're right on time." Hitomi added.

 _Always so gentle to the kids,_ Hiashi thought.

The cinnamon buns arrived last. As the branch member put the tray down, Naruto decided to speak up.

"Can I ask what you put on the cinnamon buns?" Naruto asked innocuously.

The man flinched for a fraction of a second, but it didn't go unnoticed by the clan head, who was a master of reading body language.

"That is a very interesting question, Naruto. May I ask what brought this on?" Hiashi asked before the branch member had a chance to defend himself.

"I was passing by the kitchen when I heard someone talk about extra powder on the cinnamon buns and how no one would notice them."

Hiashi narrowed his eyes as he stared down the man. "You will explain."

"I-I was just...!"

"Quit your stuttering and explain yourself. What did you put on the buns?" Hiashi was close to just activating the Caged Bird Seal, but he didn't out of consideration for his wife and daughter.

"I-I just put what they told me to-"

He tried to escape, but he was no match for the clan head and his wife. With a combination attack between the two, he was down in a matter of seconds.

Hiashi stepped outside and flared his chakra while Hitomi went back to comfort her daughter. Within moments, some guards arrived, and he had them call for the one man he trusted above all others, his brother Hizashi.

He quickly explained the situation to his brother, who set out with some guards to find out just what the hell was going on. A quick check from the medic-nins in the clan confirmed that the buns were indeed laced with poison.

Hiashi quietly pulled Naruto aside.

"You have saved not just my daughter this time, but also my wife. I am once again in your debt. Thank you, Naruto." With that, Hiashi gave him a small bow.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "I was just lucky for passing by at the right time. Besides, I see you all as family, and family shouldn't owe anything to each other."

"Family..." Hiashi had a faraway look in his eyes for a moment, as thoughts of a united Hyuuga clan entered his mind.

"Come see me after you finish your taijutsu training tomorrow. I have something to give you."


	6. Chapter 6

**400 follows already? Thanks a lot guys.**

* * *

Naruto blocked an incoming kick from Ko before retaliating with a punch with his right fist. Ko quickly shifted to the right and grabbed Naruto's outstretched arm. He pulled him in and threw him, but Naruto didn't lose his balance and landed on his feet, arms raised in a defensive position.

Naruto charged again with his fist pulled back. Instead of punching at Ko, however, he swung his arm downwards and used the momentum to twist his body as his right foot kicked upwards. Ko was forced to quickly step back as he hadn't been prepared to guard against an attack aimed high.

 _That was unexpected!_ Ko thought to himself.

"You've improved. You don't charge in recklessly anymore, and know when to be on the defensive. Well done." Ko complimented.

"Thanks, you're a good teacher too." Naruto replied.

"I heard Hiashi-sama wanted to talk to you after training, so we'll stop here today. Go ahead and take the rest of the day off, you've earned it."

With a quick thanks, Naruto turned around and ran off.

 _Wow, that spinning move really worked!_ Naruto spoke to Tamamo.

 _Of course it did, why did you think I spent so much time training you to be able to spin in place so much?_

* * *

Hiashi frowned as he watched his daughter spar with another Hyuuga girl. There wasn't anything wrong with Hinata's Juuken form, per se, it just didn't seem like her heart was in it. If it had only happened today, then he could understand since she had just found out that her mother was getting poisoned for a while now. But her lacking performance wasn't anything that had just started recently, for it had been going on for quite some time now.

He watched as Hinata parried an incoming palm strike, leaving her opponent open for an easy counterattack. It was a very clear opening in her opponent's stance, but for one reason or another, she didn't capitalize on it and hesitated.

Obviously, her opponent wasn't going to just stand there with her guard down. The girl quickly backed off before preparing another round of attacks.

Hiashi wondered if he was doing something wrong. He wished his wife was by his side right now, but she was staying in the Konoha hospital at the moment. Normally, the Hyuugas had their own team of competent medic-nins in the clan, but with what happened recently, it was wiser to leave her with the village hospital instead.

"Uncle Hiashi-sama!"

Hiashi turned around to see Naruto approach him.

"Hello, Naruto. How was your training?"

"Ko-sensei said I did really well today! So he let me take the rest of the day off."

"Is that so? That's good to hear." Hiashi raised an eyebrow. Ko was a bit of a slave driver when it came to training. But then again, it was that attitude that made him into a fine Hyuuga guard. Whenever he was off duty, he was actually rather laid back.

"You said you had something for me, uncle?"

"I do, but why don't we watch Hinata spar first?"

Naruto took his usual spot next to Hiashi and watched Hinata spar with her opponent. Unfortunately, Hinata seemed to be losing.

"Come on Hinata! We believe in you!" Naruto cheered twice as hard since no one else could hear Tamamo cheering for her as well.

 _We?_ Naruto's word choice didn't pass by Hiashi unnoticed. He was pretty sure that Naruto was referring to Hiashi and Naruto himself, but for some reason, he gave off the impression that _we_ was referring to someone else.

Hinata's eyes widened at the sound of her friend's voice. There was no way she was going to lose, not when her friend was watching!

"HAAAAA!" Hinata slipped through her opponent's guard and slammed a double palm strike into her chest. In an instant, she was knocked down to the ground.

Everyone looked wide-eyed with surprise, especially the elders.

"See? She's totally awesome!" Naruto stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Hinata helped the other girl up before running over the Naruto and her father.

"I won!" Hinata ran up and hugged Naruto. Hiashi looked on with an amused expression, making Hinata give a small 'eep!' and she quickly backed off.

"That you did, daughter. Why don't you go inside and get cleaned up?"

Hinata bowed and ran off, and Hiashi turned back to Naruto.

"Ah, I believe I have something here for you."

Hiashi reached into his robe and pulled out what looked like a small pendant with the Hyuuga clan symbol on it.

"You've done a great service for myself as well as the clan. As the clan head, I would like to present you with this."

He put the pendant into Naruto's hands as he continued explaining.

"Only a friend and ally of the Hyuuga clan is allowed to bear this mark. If, for whatever reason, you require assistance from a Hyuuga you aren't familiar with, simply show them that mark and they will be happy to assist you. Be sure to take good care of it." Hiashi explained calmly as Naruto stared at it in amazement.

"Also, ninja commonly wear their clan symbol on their clothing. Though you aren't a Hyuuga, you may wear the Hyuuga clan symbol on your ninja clothing if you so choose. As the head of the clan, I will permit it."

Hiashi didn't really expect Naruto to understand the significance of everything since he was still just a child, but he was sure that he would understand as he got older.

Meanwhile, Tamamo was practically shouting in Naruto's head.

 _Do you realize how important this is? This is basically his way of calling you family!_

"Remember, if you ever need help with anything, the Hyuuga will be happy to assist. That is all."

With that, Hiashi turned and left.

 _Huh, guess your uncle Hiashi likes you after all._

 _I still remember the first time I snuck into Hinata's room, I thought he was going to throw me back onto the streets when he caught me!_

 _He is a nice man underneath that cold mask of his, though. So since we have some extra free time while Hinata is getting ready, more training?_

 _Yeah, let's go!_

* * *

"Otou-sama, do you know where Naruto-kun is?" Hinata asked her father.

"I believe he's out by that tree in the empty field that you two seem to be so fond of."

"I see, thank you!" With that, Hinata bowed and quickly ran off in search of her friend.

 _Actually, I wonder what Naruto is up to. Surely a quick break couldn't hurt._ Hiashi pondered to himself as he decided to check up on the two.

* * *

The sewer of his mindscape was slowly starting to crumble. Large cracks ran along the walls, and a few scant rays of sunlight were seeping into his inner world. Though the ground was still covered by water, there were a few plants that were popping up here and there.

"Now," Tamamo started explaining as she got into her lecture mode, "from what I can tell, this world is devoid of magic. As a spiritual being from another world, I can't survive without magical energy. Fortunately for the both of us, it seems that the natural energy in the surroundings is an acceptable substitute. Usually I gather and convert it while you sleep, since it seems to be easier to handle when your body isn't moving. Do you understand?"

Naruto nodded, and she continued her lecture.

"While that's good and all, it takes a lot of natural energy to refill my reserves, and this seal makes pulling energy from the outside really difficult. I could pull chakra directly from your body instead and convert that into mana, but I would prefer not to. Since you're not really calling upon my powers, I don't use up a lot of magical energy, and I try to store any excess energy too, but you can only store so much in your body. What does this mean for us? I don't really have much mana to spare if you ever need to call upon my powers in a real fight. Which brings us to why I called you in here today..."

With a wave of her hand, Tamamo summoned her mirror to her side, the **_Suiten Nikkō Amaterasu Yano Shizu-Ishi (Eightfold Blessings of Amaterasu)_**.

"Why waste mana when you can just hit your enemies with this mirror?" Tamamo exclaimed cheerfully, making Naruto facefault.

"But, but throwing fireballs is so much cooler!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Now, now. While I'll let you use my powers to defend yourself, I don't really want you to throw magic around just yet. Maybe when you're older, your body can store more energy, and hopefully I'll have gotten better at converting it into mana as well. Besides, everything I teach you has a purpose. Watch this."

He watched as Tamamo fought against an invisible opponent, her claws and kicks amplified by wind magecraft, and when she flailed her arms, the floating mirror followed her movements and flew through the air like a projectile.

"See? If you use my powers, you're also fighting alongside my the mirror as well. It uses less energy to strengthen your own body with magic instead of firing it directly. What seems like pointless flailing is actually to guide the mirror where you want it to go. When you get better at it, you'll be able to move it with just your thoughts."

Tamamo demonstrated as the mirror flew according to her will without having to lift a finger.

"Woah, that's pretty cool!" Naruto exclaimed. "Although I still think fireballs are cooler."

Tamamo chuckled. "Well maybe if you complete my training properly, I'll show you how to do this."

With a wave of her hand, a circle of ofuda appeared in midair. She pushed her palm forward and a torrent of flames shot out towards the wall, searing the wall as it left a portion of it glowing red hot.

Naruto was looking absolutely giddy as Tamamo suppressed a smirk.

"Now, now, hurry up and get stared." Tamamo shook her head as the boy was already out of his mindscape.

* * *

Naruto was out by the tree training according to Tamamo's instructions. He practiced the clawing motions that Tamamo did, as she explained that his fingers wrapped in wind magecraft could potentially do more damage than simply punching the opposition. With the assumption that ninjas usually wore light armor, slashing attacks would do more damage instead of blunt attacks. He practiced his kicks and spins as well, as she emphasized that mixing taijutsu and ninja arts with her floating mirror and her sorceries together would make a very deadly combination.

He stopped to catch his breath, only to see a bewildered Hyuuga Hinata staring at him with wide eyes.

"Oh, er, I can explain?"


End file.
